Readers sound off on terrorism, the constitutional convention and wild horses

Manhattan: I read the headline that The News ran calling terrorist Sayfullo Saipov a "devil" (Nov. 2). Whoever wrote that does not understand the mentality of these terrorists. The News just patted them on the back. They love it. What they don't love is when you call them what they are: jerks. If you had called him a jerk who has no understanding of the value of life and no understanding how to live life spiritually or otherwise, they would have hated it. Stop flattering them with wonderful titles that they can take glory in. Millie Anthony

Rutherford, N.J.: The good little liberal that he is, Mayor de Blasio is against the death penalty for the Manhattan bike path terrorist. I always remember Gov. Mario Cuomo arguing at the time that almost all civilized countries had done away with the death penalty. In other words, if you are for the death penalty, you must be uncivilized.

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But I'll bet if you argue long enough (and I have), you'll get the death penalty opponent to eventually say locking them away for life is worse than killing them.

Back to de Blasio. The mayor says "I believe this is an individual who should rot in prison for the rest of his life." So this "civilized man" wants to torture Saipov until he dies a slow agonizing death by rotting?

What do people usually say when a loved one dies horribly? "I hope he didn't suffer." In other words, it is better to die quickly and not know "what hit you." But liberals don't want the criminal to die "quickly." They'd rather see him suffer in prison for the rest of his life.

The sad truth is that even in the prisoner's relative suffering, he experiences many pleasures throughout the years. A good meal, a good movie or TV show, a good book, etc. Why, even a good bowel movement is a pleasure. The victim or victims will never experience a pleasure ever again. Francis J. Viola

Saturation nation

Manhattan: The terrorist attack was horrific and my heart goes out to everyone. However, when this happens, the news media goes crazy. Every channel wants to be the best. The stations keep doing the same story over and over again. They suspend popular shows like "Jeopardy!" and "Wheel of Fortune." The networks should know that, after something so horrible, their audience needs something to lift their spirits. Yvonne Carr

Heartless

Brooklyn: Memo to Tamar Birckhead ("He still has rights under laws of U.S.," column, Nov. 3): What dream world do you inhabit? A terrorist just murdered eight people and you talk about the presumption of innocence? Go talk to the mom of Nicholas Cleves, a truly outstanding 23-year-old kid, and communicate your idealism. Disgraceful. William Thurlow

Now that you mention it

Norwalk, Conn.: Re "Rigged to spurn Bern" (Nov. 3): If ever there was a plot, it was Bernie Sanders running as a Democrat. Tony Salvatore

Blame Bernie

Cedar Grove, N.J.: If the DNC wanted to spurn Bern and push Hillary Clinton's candidacy, who can blame them? Sanders jumped from independent to Democrat just to run for President. His candidacy was less about the Democratic Party than it was about Bernie Sanders. When Donna Brazile noted that the "alternative (Trump) was a person who would put the very future of the country in peril," she failed to acknowledge that it was Sanders who helped put that person in the White House by not urging his supporters to vote Democratic. Keith Biesiada

What was she thinking?

Forest Hills: So, let me get this straight: Paz de la Huerta claims Harvey Weinstein raped her, in her home, yet she doesn't report it to the police. Ten days later, Harvey comes knocking on her door and, instead of calling 911, she lets Harvey in and claims he raped her a second time. How dumb can this woman be? Linda Sperling

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Strong and wrong

Warwick, N.Y.: Voicer Charles Morgan is spot-on in his assessment of the very ignorant Voicer John Scott. I'm glad there are people out there who can still spot a b.s. artist and call him out on it. Lenise Rogers

Keep tweeting

Bronx: I think President Trump is doing a great job tweeting us his thoughts. No other President in the annals of history kept in touch like he does. He expresses his opinion about events going on and what is to be done about the problems. Who really knew what was going on in other administrations daily? A lot of people think tweeting is not what a President should do, but Trump is not an ordinary President. He is for the people, and he tweets at us because he is one of us. Giavanna Gesselli

Travel ban

Brooklyn: The State Department is now identifying convicted child sex offenders on their passports, after a law passed last year. But there's still a non-profit organization called the Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws that is suing the government for violating the constitutional rights of these criminals. They went as far as to say that soon Muslims and homosexuals could be labeled the same way, as if they three groups were comparable in any way! This is absolutely degrading and insulting on multiple levels. Maryam Amin

The con con delusion

Manhattan: "Case for a convention" (editorial, Oct. 31) is disingenuous at best. For the Daily News to suggest the average New Yorker would actually have a chance at getting elected as a delegate to a convention and then, as you suggest, focus on issues like home rule is preposterous. Who other than a politician or the politically connected can leave their job for an unknown amount of time to serve as a delegate? Back here on Earth, working men and women like teachers and firefighters and construction workers are concerned about real issues like affordable housing, mass transit they can rely on and keeping the many rights already included in our Constitution. The labor movement makes no apologies for fighting to ensure workers continue to have the right to collectively bargain, unemployment insurance, workers compensation, the eight-hour work day, civil service protections, public employee pension protections, prevailing rate, the right to a sound basic education and the duty of the state to take care of the needy. We are living in uncertain times and know from past experience that powerful well-funded corporate lobbyists would dominate the process and then dictate which of those rights New Yorkers will lose. And yes, those are real demons a convention would unleash. Mario Cilento, President, NY AFL-CIO

Save the horses

Colorado Springs: Thank you for a very clear voice on what is happening to wild horses ("Congress targets our wild horses," Op-Ed, Nov. 1). I would like to add that slaughter is not the only threat to the equine of the Western landscape. The real threat in new legislation is the word "euthanasia." Euthanasia not only of the older or lame horse, but of any horse not sold or adopted within the next three years — as well as any in their own territory if the population goes over the arbitrarily low population number set for an area. For example, in an area that had 64 total horses on 71,000 acres, the 65th could be euthanized immediately. Wild horses do belong. They replenish the soil where they are. They help out all other kinds of animals in the wild. They are our story and they have some of the most unique clean genetics of all horses in America. Mary Young

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Protect and serve

Manhattan: Police officers have a duty to protect those they serve. A very basic standard that we should expect is that they would never engage in sexual activity with someone who is in their custody. This is the same standard we have for corrections officers in jails and prisons, or medical professionals in health-care settings. Two officers who have been indicted for raping, sexually abusing and kidnapping a young woman they had taken into custody say the sexual activity was consensual. But given the extraordinarily uneven power dynamics, I don't think consent is really applicable. Furthermore, disparaging the young woman's social media posts, as the officers' lawyers have done, is a time-worn way of diverting attention from the wrong-doing of any accused rapist. Don't we know better by now? Ariel Zwang CEO, Safe Horizon